Tide Marks by H.M. Tomlinson — Read

Whether I looked at the grotesque shape of Celebes on the chart, or leaned on the ship's rail to watch the unfolding of its coast, I could hardly believe it. The map shows the island as a bundle of peninsulas tied in the middle and flung anyhow on the ocean. There Celebes sprawls, with none of its long limbs straightened out. It lies between Borneo and New Guinea, and is akin to neither. For that matter, it is like no other island in any of the seas. It is big enough to be noticeable-its area is greater than that of Java-yet few people seem to have heard of it.

I suppose we all know Borneo. That island is sufficiently familiar to cause mirth in any London music hall by the mention of its name. As for New Guinea, so many sensational books are now appearing about it that our nerves no longer respond. But Celebes has been overlooked; and that, when you come to think of it, is not at all a surprising fate to befall what is entirely and freely original. It has received less critical attention than Laputa. We are much less certain about it than we are of such evident things as the subconscious self.